Fury and Flame
by lawizeg
Summary: Following the Noxian-Ionian conflict, Karma and Udyr learn to appreciate the things they share as well as the things they don't. Their flames smoulder deep, beneath what anyone else could see; beyond what either of them can control. Karmadyr.


Karma stepped out of the room of war heroes, seeking solace from the relentless buzz of congratulations and commendation. The conflict had been over for weeks. It was surprisingly bitter in addition to the sweetness that the woman had expected when the barbaric intruders finally relented and left Ionia. The war was over yes–but there had been _war_ and her home was sorely wounded. Later, Karma would remember seeing the man for the first time; all her previous sightings of him had been of a vengeful beast burning with the rage of war, annihilating his offenders. Now, he stood on a balcony overlooking the Placidium like a normal man. From what little Karma knew of him, normal was the one thing she knew he was not.

The only thing typical about him was his choice of footwear; Ionian tradition demanded sandals of all its inhabitants. From his looks, however, Karma knew he was not a native. Unconsciously, she stepped onto the balcony, giving a physical representation of her interest. A sash encircled his intensely muscled, bare core and chest. Dark, thick hair shuddered in the breeze and flowed from his head into a full beard where his fingertips met. For the occasion, Karma assumed, the man had worn an ivory robe with olive trimming and a trio of ornamental jade crystals. Unlike on the battlefield, his arms were bare, lacking the arcane appendages he had summoned to fight. She found herself drawn to his deep calm and approached him. Had the man even noticed her entry?

The instant Karma moved to take another step, he opened his eyes and turned to her. Karma felt something in her jump at the immediate, piercing contact of his luminous eyes. His orbs shone blueish green, yet were tinged with orange and red. They were both intensely beautiful and captivating, but jarring, for reasons Karma could not yet explain. Before she could think about it, he dipped at the waist in a bow.

"Valiant Duchess Karma...it is my honor." Karma took in the way his voice resonated with something...deeper than she had ever heard in her life. It was not the timber alone, nor the gruffness with which he ironically spoke such civil, polite words. Karma blinked, growing increasingly immersed with curiosity for the mystery before her.

"Thank you," As she spoke in response, the fact that his name was unknown to her came to the forefront of Karma's mind. "I have seen your prowess in battle, but never learned your name. May I?"

"I am called Udyr. Yes, I do come from the Freljord. Lee Sin invited me to his monastery a few years ago, where I had stayed for a time." Karma raised a brow at this. Lee hadn't said too much about him in the past; only that he had met a Freljordian man who became a treasured friend. She supposed there wasn't much reason to go beyond that before now.

"You have quite a bit of hair for a monk." Udyr's laugh rumbled deep in his chest and brought a smile to Karma's face. Irelia was just a stick in the mud–she _could_ be funny at times.

"No, I am no monk. But they have taught me much of Ionian wisdom, for which I am grateful." He turned and looked out at the Placidium and seemed to contemplate the teeming fauna and glistening falls. "It is a debt I hope we have begun to repay through aiding your defense against the attackers. Your country is..a great one, Duchess."

"Thank you for your efforts, Udyr. On behalf of Ionia–again–we are so grateful for your aid." Karma kept her eyes trained on him and continued after pausing for a moment. "I don't recall anyone else...like you, however. You said 'we'? Are they here?"

Udyr turned to look at her with his kaleidoscope eyes again. "The answer to what I am is not that simple. If you would like, I can reveal my nature to you at another time." As confused as Karma was, her mind buzzed with possibilities and found she could not say no. Or look away.

"Will you be able to meet at Lee's home tomorrow? I cannot lie...your abilities were incredible to see. I don't doubt that they're special too."

"Of course."

* * *

Knowing that the monk was typically in the throes of meditation at this point of day, Karma refrained from knocking on the door to seek entry and simply strode around to the back of his home. There, she found that Lee must have been informed of their meeting and had kindly prepared tea for the pair on his patio. Udyr was already sitting patiently. As soon as she entered his line of sight, he stood and bowed again. Yes, that would need to stop. "Duchess Karma," he greeted mid-bow. Karma touched a hand to his bare shoulder and said, "Please, just Karma." Udyr looked up and nodded.

After settling into her seat and readying her cup of tea, Karma began, "I thought about your story...and frankly, I'm confused. Freljordian warrior takes leisurely trip to an Ionian monastery...with no intent of becoming a monk?"

Udyr smirked at her wholly inaccurate description of his past. "Perhaps this will clear things up..I am a Spirit Walker."

Realization and recognition came upon Karma. She considered the man before her again...he was a rare breed indeed. Karma had only known of the Spirit Walkers from her deep knowledge of Valoran spirituality overall. She found herself intrigued more than before; captivated by someone like herself. As the core of Ionian spirit, Karma took to those who were true to their spirits, like all that she wanted to be. Udyr stood, arresting her attention once more. Her eyes followed his even as he towered over her across the table.

Suddenly, the multicolored depths of his eyes shifted to shining cerulean, and his arms were encapsulated in ethereal blue clawed gauntlets. His hair fanned out and Karma could only look on in awe. The markings on his face changed with each stance, as did the color of his eyes and the shape of his spirit-arms. She felt blazing heat like a burst of swirling flames from a phoenix and the undeniable power of a tiger pulse from within him.

"These four ancient spirits endure...through me." And then he was Udyr again. Karma swallowed in shock of the incredible display and pieced all she had seen together. It was amazing.

* * *

It was between rebuilding Ionia and herself that Karma made time to meet with Udyr. He was impossible to keep away from the nature of Ionia itself, and Karma wondered how hard sitting with her drinking tea might have been for him. They walked through forests, sat on cliffs, stared at waterfalls, and talked. He was not four different personalities as she'd first suspected, but Karma found his psyche to be stable and strong. Stalwart, consistent, but still in tune with his heart and susceptible to emotion. As time wore on, she deemed it admirable.

Karma caught herself smiling with her lips just as much with her heart and conceded to herself that this man was a great friend. He was quiet at the moment, running one of his strong, large hands over the shell of a turtle that had found him intriguing. Karma laid her head on the knee she'd drawn up and watched. Udyr attempted to coax the tiny reptile back out of its shell after it slipped off of his cloak and retreated in fright, but found no success. He whispered something to his vulnerable friend and set him on the ground, then turned to her.

A flutter twisted in her gut at the sustained eye contact, but she ignored it. Their eyes bore into each other, and Karma felt like he was looking all the way into her soul. So she just looked back into his. There were no words, just the quiet that only nature could give.

It dawned on Karma later that it was a moment she couldn't have had with anyone else.

* * *

Karma was perplexed.

something about him changed when she'd spoke about what the Noxians had done to her home village, Not one Ionian was happy about the war, but Karma did not burn with the fury he did as she recounted her experience. In truth, it was shocking. Karma's soul in the war had not faltered, but found strength in her will for peace. She did not hate Noxians. But...neither did he, she realized.

His reaction was borne of outrage at their trespasses. It was something she had not known, as an Ionian steeped in the tradition of her people. They preached balance above all, and she'd always thought losing oneself to anger was a glaring violation of that balance. Karma became acutely aware of the twin dragons that swirled almost lazily in the mantle behind her head. A picture of balance, the icon of Ionia.

Udyr was not wrong...he was a side of the spectrum. She knew they had both desired peace, balance...and were quick to do what was necessary to achieve them. It was not a coincidence that they felt differently about it but had met in the middle, Karma thought. They _were_ balance.

The pair kept walking as the sun went down. The beauty was not lost on Karma and silently, she reveled in it. By the time they came upon his home, the fierce shining sun had given way to the cool luminescent moon.

* * *

"What do you do?"

Udyr blurted his sudden inquiry after they'd come to a small clearing intent on sharing lunch.

"..Excuse me?" There was no offense in her tone, Karma was simply at a loss for what he meant. Udyr cleared her throat, or grunted...or something.

"How do you fight?" There was something almost needy in the way he said that, Karma noticed.

"Magic..." Where was he going with this?

"Show me?"

"...Ok." No one was around, she couldn't see why not. Closing her eyes to focus, Karma touched the flame in her spirit and thrust her hand outward toward the empty field. A lick of that flame twisted in flight until it dissipated some distance away. Karma noted that the colors that had emanated from it were the same as those which sparkled in Udyr's eyes as he watched. After the flame had disappeared, he turned and looked at her expectantly, as if waiting for more.

"Well, I'll actually need you, in a fight of sorts, if you want to see everything." Udyr nodded and took a few steps back and to the side to stand in front of her, shifting to the familiar turtle stance for resilience.

Udyr smirked and cast a bit of a challenge to his friend. "Hold nothing back."

Gathering her resolve and settling into her own stance, Karma began to launch flames at the man, forcing him to dodge. He did, and upon realizing he could avoid being pummeled, slipped into the stance that began to make her heart race. A light sweat broke out on her skin as she pulled a concentrated amount of arcane conflagration from her spirit and finally blasted Udyr. He was quick, and as soon as he saw that his dodge-roll had been thwarted by Karma's aim, brought his arms up to protect from the blast. The impact sent him reeling back, but he used the momentum to return to a standing position and defend against whatever else was coming. Udyr's red eyes quickly darted from Karma to the glowing cord she'd cast from her hand and sent toward his chest. It was too late to dodge.

He froze when it connected. It didn't hurt–she was probably keeping that part out of the spell. What threw him completely off guard was the feeling it brought. Through the cord he could feel Karma's strength and resolve smouldering within her spirit–her will–and the sheer power of it left him stunned. He looked up at her with eyes blazing and raw with respect. Immediately, the cord vanished and she slowly met his eyes. Udyr saw much in them, but was taken aback by the light blazing within the blue-green depths.

Karma was just as much the warrior he was.

* * *

It was winter in Ionia now. Udyr had finally deigned to wear a shirt, sort of. Really, it was simply a matching sleeveless vest, most likely only worn to ward off questions about his well being when he was seen outdoors.

Their contact did not dwindle as Karma thought it might. He took her hiking through a white forest along a path blanketed in snow, and being Freljordian, apparently did this sort of thing all the time. When they finally reached their destination–which Karma had not even thought about–she was utterly relieved. They'd come to a small camping ground, she supposed, and promptly entered one of the cabins to find Lee and Irelia inside, talking over tea. They smiled at the pair and greetings were exchanged.

Udyr moved to make his own cup of tea, and Karma decided to do the same. By the time she unzipped her coat and made her way to the kitchenette, Udyr was walking toward her with two cups in hand. Karma felt a tug in her heart at the simple but sweet gesture. She smiled, took the one he offered, and mouthed her thanks.

"It is nothing." His rough voice was as gentle as she'd ever heard. There was no hint of tiger, bear, turtle, or phoenix when he looked down at her, nor when he spoke. His eyes were as beautiful as always and only made themselves more so by the way they reflected the firelight from the back of the room. She found she was acutely aware of how close they were standing, and just how much taller, bigger, and stronger he was than her. Karma broke the eye contact. As they took the few steps toward where their friends were seated, she found herself distracted from their conversation.

If they had been alone...Karma was not sure what would have happened just then. She did, however, know what she had been hoping for. It felt silly for _her_ to say that it felt like her soul was ablaze in that moment, but Karma had felt it more than ever these past months. She couldn't ignore it. His fingers brushing hers, looking into his eyes, simply being near him and learning Udyr.

After downing her tea incredibly quickly, even for an Ionian, Karma stood and excused herself. Irelia was intently listening to Lee tell what was admittedly hilarious tale from his time in Ionia's summoner college, and so neither of them were suspicious of her behavior.

She spent a few minutes in the chill air outside of the cabin, testing the crunch of the snow beneath her boot before Udyr stepped outside as well. He turned his head one way, then the other, and upon detecting Karma asked, "Are you well?"

Karma took a deep breath and exhaled, still looking forward. She observed her breath crystalized before her eyes for a few seconds before turning to Udyr with a smile and a nod. He strode in her direction, meeting her in but a few due to his long, powerful legs. He clasped his arms behind his back and seemed to confirm her claim with his own eyes. Satisfied, and yet not, he grunted and tilted his head. Karma sighed again.

Finally, she looked at him and met his eyes.

There was something so honest in the way he'd kept his eyes on hers that made both shattered her resolve and strengthened it. Karma lifted both hands, curled one into his vest, then pressed the other behind his neck and into his hair. When he was close enough, she pressed her lips to his in a tender kiss. Udyr was frozen again, and yet, lit ablaze. Karma released him and began to sink back, but he pulled her frame into his this time. The second kiss was deeper and spoke of the passion between the two.

Seconds ticked by; they broke apart only when they needed air.

Udyr lowered his forehead to the crown of her head and breathed _Karma_ in as he continued to hold her close. There were no words–they both knew this was deeper than just a kiss. Karma took a few more shaky breaths, utterly overwhelmed with the power of their spiritual connection. He pulled back enough to look into her eyes and Karma could feel the rest of the world fall away.

She had never known a flame like this; it was elemental, as strong as it was deep.

* * *

Karmadyr!

Welp. I got this idea like five hours ago and here it is. Hope you enjoyed, leave a review! Trying to work on my oneshot game, hopefully the theme was...apparent.


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